REGATTA IN AUBURN BAY: LOVEABLE. LIVABLE. LAKE-ABLE.

Proving once again that everything you need, is in south Calgary.

I came to Calgary in 1990 when my family moved from British Columbia to a relatively brand new lake community called Sundance.

At the time, Sundance represented the farthest south you could go before reaching the dirt country road known as 22x.

If you liked open space, obstruction-free views and 45-minute bus rides to Anderson Station, then the deep south was an attractive place to live. But if you wanted to experience the sights, sounds and culture of Calgary, you had to go North of Southcentre Mall.

Now, almost 30 years and several moves later, my wife and I are looking to move out of the downtown rental scene and buy a home in the southern suburbs.

And to say that the landscape of south Calgary looks a little different now, is an incredible understatement.

Identified in the building industry as “right-sizers”, our goal was to reduce our mortgage and square footage for the next few years to allow my wife to quit her job and stay at home with our new son and two dogs.

Specifically, we were looking to move to a lake community that was close to playgrounds, dog parks and popular amenities, and that allowed us to remain in the south without sacrificing the conveniences and luxuries we had grown accustomed to downtown.

Its location in an established lake community, with proximity to Auburn Station and a plethora of new retail developments, is unmatched in its value. Not to mention the parks and spacious green space where I could see children and their dogs running laps around an island.

Inside the condo, we were happy to see unique, stylish floorplans that featured oversized kitchens complete with quartz countertops and stainless steel appliances that would most definitely be costly add-ons anywhere else.

It wasn’t long before we began to visualize how amazing our modern furniture and decor would look in this newly developed space — it helped that the colours were exactly our style.

Even our dogs’ needs were considered thanks to a convenient dog wash station available to all residents.

Perfect way to ensure their four-legged loved ones don’t track dirt on the nicely polished floors.

As someone looking for a fresh start in a condo that took away the extra space and yard work I had no time for, without making me feel like I had sacrificed comfort and functionality, I really felt like a Calgarian really could get it all at Regatta.

And I wasn’t alone in my search for something that fit a specific lifestyle.

I met up with two other existing residents, both of whom led lives quite different from my own.

But who were both equally impressed with Regatta’s ability to cater to their evolving needs.